So I've had my TL for 2 winters now. I came from 8 years of driving AWD and 4WD vehicles; WRX, Legacy, Cherokee. Maybe it was just the shock of getting back into a FWD car, but it seemed like this thing handled worse than my old 80-something Nissan 200SX, which walls very light in the butt and RWD. It seemed to be that the only way to get the thing to move was to kill the VSA and hope to not burn up the tires too much. I've spoken to other friends of mine that drive Honda's (Accords, TLs, TSXs) and all but the Accord guy said the same in reference to the anemic response to these cars in the snow. I should state that I was/am still a very big fan of Subarus, but I love what the TL offers in terms of refinement and quality. Well, the bells and whistles too.

What am I to do? I've spoken to the wife and she is always set against getting cars, she hates the process and spending the money. Then I let her drive in the aftermath of the last snowstorm that hit the east coast. She seems to be a little more on board now. I was considering stepping away from the TL and getting an STi. I would love to get the 4th gen SH, but it's out of my price range. My other and more feasible alternative is to give the car another shot next winter, not that this one has really ended yet, and throw some dedicated snow tires on in lieu of all-seasons. And yes, I do realize the STi and TL are completely different cars with different goals in mind, but if I get a Subaru again it will only be an STi. To me it's the final Suby plateau for me.

 

Get snow tires.

It's not the TL that is the problem, the stock tires that came on these cars (the same with Honda's) suck in the snow.

 

^Well put. Snow tires make a big difference...

 

I figured as much. It also legitimizes my future rim purchase. To the wife: "But if I put snow tires on my stocks, what will I do for the rest of the year? I'll have to buy aftermarket wheels with some nice wide tires, a suspension setup and all the other goodies that go along with summer driving." I can sell it.

 

You might as well get winter tires, I had an STI and you would have to do the same thing, get winter tires. I had on the stock potenza RE-070 in an ice storm.. worst thing ever, i almost crashed into everything. I parked immediately.

 

Get some snow tires for your car, Nokians are some of the best out there.

If you want something great for all 4 seasons, the Continental DWS is the best one out there!

 

Continental DWS tires. They are the best all season tires for the snow, period. Unless you live someplace that warrants pure snow tires, I would get these in a heart beat.

Also, leave the car in 1st gear when stuck in snow. high powered torque + non snow tires that freeze into tractionless plastic + heavy vehicle + extreme accelerations = fail.

 

I'm looking for the Continental DWS, they look like they're never in stock (according to tirerack.com).

 

Tires make all the difference.
I had Michelin Pilot A/S's which were near the end of their life at 65K, and switched to Kumho Exsta ASX's. They made a WORLD of difference. Have not had any probs this winter at all.
I have to admit that the handling is not as crisp in the dry, probably softer sidewalls.


'07 TL-S 5A/T CBP
FUJITA F5
PROGRESS RSB
P2R TBS
Braille battery
V1 on the lookout

 

Tires really do make all the difference. My sister has a 3G TL with some Bridgestone winter tires on it and she could plow through just about anything. She got up the driveway (its long and steep) when there was a solid layer of ice on it, while I was parked in the street.

I have Toyo Versados. Suck in snow. I went through a roundabout when there was an inch of snow on the ground and slid into the curb. No damage thankfully. From then on, I took any turn that had snow on it at <10MPH. I'm surprised I didn't slide into more shit this winter.

 

Agree with the group. Car and Driver did a snow tire vs all season vs summer tire test.

http://www.caranddriver.com/features...mparison_tests

Results surprised even them. Food for thought...

 

I have the same feeling that this is one of the worst cars i've ever had in the snow. Only my 2wd pickup was worse. It's cost me way too many ski days this year, I'm going with a cherokee, wrangler or grand Cherokee for next winter. For a little more than what Id pay for snow tires and another set of wheels i could pick something up.

 

guys i dont know about you but its about the driver i have type s wheels on my tl with stock tires and my baby did just find in the snow didnt get stuck once even going up a hill-------------i even saw a pathfinder that was fwd getting stuck its all about your driving skill no offence

 

snow tires does really make a big difference i had falken 452's on the tl when it was snowing it was bad and i felt like i was going no where.. I loose traction with 1-2 inches of snow even with the VSA on also couldn't brake right, but when I install the snow tires on it drives like a champ =D but not as good as any awd car


this have nothing to do with skill or not is it really that hard to build up speed, and dont let the car stop when going up an hill? plus I thought the type s are equipped with different tires then the base tl's...

 

Can't agree more. We don't use the TL in the winter so I can't comment on the performance, but with UHP A/S tires I'm certain it's far from optimal. Our '08 knock around car is not very good with the OE tires, especially after 20+ years of Jeeps, but having a working garage area I keep snow tires mounted and when the need arises, I put them on and you'd be amazed at the difference. The house is on a hill with a 700' driveway, and although ground clearance isn't the greatest, the ’08 will pull quite easily as long as the snow isn't deep enough to cause a drag on the undercarriage.

The TL-S also has a LSD that helps in slippery conditions.

 

If I remember right, the 6MT comes with a limited slip front axle and the 6AT does not. Quite an advantage if that's the case. (Can anyone else confirm?) I've never had a problem in the snow with all seasons, but then again, I also have the 6MT.

 

I've got at 6 MT 2005 TL with approx. 68K miles on it. Put Goodyear Response Edge ultra performance touring tires on the stock rims this past fall. The limited slip differential along with the manual transmission makes the car very good on ice and snow. We've had snow on the ground for 99 days and the TL has handled it very well. Now, deep snow when you start "pushing" the snow requires a vehicle with a high center of gravity. If that happens stay home. The TL handles snow/ice very well assuming you know how to drive in those type of elements and conditions.

 

I have Kumho Exsta's and I thought they were awful in the Minnesota winters. They caused me to buy snow tires.

 

I dunno.Maybe my Michelins were so worn that any new tire would have made a difference

 

i have to agree with the stock tires this car sucks in the snow. Everyone says it is much better with all season tires so i will give that a try next year

 

i have summer tires. well really 3 season

 

I have the 18x8 ASPEC rims with Yoko W4S tires I use for spring, summer and fall driving, but I switch to the Bridgestone Blizzak WS 60's for the winter. I purchased a set of 2006 17 inch factory rims to use the Blizzaks on. I swap out the wheels and tires in mid December and change back to the ASPEC rims in late March. The Blizzak's are great in the snow. Driving in the snow is a breeze with these tires. They were tested on a hockey rink and performed very good by a major tire retailer.

My wife had Blizzak's on her M3 and had no problems at all in the snow.

Mike

 

Blizzard conditions this morning. I drove around the block and back into my garage without stopping in fear I wouldn't be able to get going again. I then had the wife drop me off at work in her Suby. The TL plowed a foot of snow into the garage. I have Blizzaks, but I think the depth of the snow causes massive drag and lifts the front of the car up. All other days, it does great.

 

This is true, especially for lowered cars. My continentals are excellent, but not even they can cope when I beach myself onto a bank of snow, effectively lifting my tires from the ground. This is an example of where awd/high clearance vehicles come in handy.

 

Snow tires would definitly help but i still agree with alot of people about the tl not being very good in snow. Snow tires or not. I bought the Continental DWS early this winter and i have not been very impressed, for how aggresive the tread is they have not lived up to my expectations. Dont get me wrong i still like the tires but compared to some other A/S tires geared more towards dry handling performance i wont be buying the DWS again. I drove threw pa winters last year with high performance summer tires and i felt just as comfortable driving with those compared to the DWS. The tl does fine in a straight line but when it comes time to turn forget about it the car is very nose heavy and pushes alot in the snow no matter what tire you use.

And the DWS has a very thin sidewall for driving when its dry. and i can feel the differance in handling compared to the summer tires i used before, there is alot more give in the corners.

 

The snow/winter performance of a tire is inversely proportional to dry/summer performance. You cant get both, the 'softness' is what leads to better snow traction, the 'hardness' is what leads to better summer performance.

 

snow tires for sure. i bought a set of 2000 3.2TL wheels and put a set of Hankook iPikes on them and use my stick wheels for summer time. I bought these wheels so i could run a narrower snow tire so i had less float in the snow. This set-up is awesome. the only time the snow bothers me now is when it is so deep that i start to snowplow with my front lip.

plus... i think the 2000 TL wheels look pretty nice. even thought they are smaller wheels, i got a little higher profile tire, so the ride quality is really supple. perfect for relaxed winter driving.

got the winter wheels and tires for about 700 bucks total.


i posted pictures of the setup a while back, search my name if you want to see it.

 

i have some bridgestone blizzak on my stock rims and those winter tires are awesome, too bad my stock rims are chrome and the salt is starting to rust it..